Marbles returns to Kerkrade

Marbles, who didn't used to do that? We all liked it anyway! To encourage outdoor play and exercise for children, the municipality of Kerkrade is laying marble tiles in a large number of public places in the neighborhoods. In addition, all elementary school in Kerkrade receive a marble tile as a gift. The first one was inaugurated Wednesday afternoon in front of the town hall by children's mayor Hidde Sieler, Alderman Jo Schlangen and initiator Tanja Bindels.

The idea of the marble tile came from Tanja Bindels, a resident of Kerkrade. Tanja saw marbles become popular again in the Netherlands a few months ago thanks to the national TV program Marble Mania. She also saw the popularity of the game at Kerkrade friends where there is a marble tile in the ground on a little square. "At that location kids are always playing: marbles, bikes, soccer," she says. "How nice it would be, I thought, if more places in Kerkrade had a marble tile and children were encouraged to play outside that way. Very nice that the city council embraced my idea."

The marble tiles bear the text Vie - Leven in beweging, the program that promotes the health and vitality of Kerkrade and Parkstad residents. Alderman Jo Schlangen (Education & Sports, among other things): "The municipal council supports this fun civic initiative because it fits in perfectly with Vie. Yes, with marbles you also move, much more than you think. You constantly have to bend down, stand up, walk to pick up your marbles. And you're out in the fresh air, which is certainly not something children take for granted these days."

Alderman Schlangen recalls his childhood on the marble track. "We went to school every day with a bag of marbles. We were always outside. How different is this day and age where many kids are mostly gaming indoors. By encouraging children to play marbles, we hope that they will go outside en masse and that the game of marbles will also become a craze in Kerkrade."